Mechanical aids to practising golf



May 4, 1965 c. COLLARO MECHANICAL AIDS T0 PRAQTISING GOLF Filed May 28, 1962 21 lnvenlor Chrlsl'oph rc #M y I Attorney United States Patent MECHANICAL AIDS Ti) PRACTISING GoLr Christopher Collaro, Polyantha, 16 Rose Walk,

Woodcote, Purley, Surrey, England Filed May 28, 1962, Ser. No. 198,360 Claims priority, application Great Britain, June 12, 1961, 21,150/61 3 Claims. (Cl. 73-381) Golfers frequently practice with mechanical aids of the kind which includes a ball that is anchored so that it can be struck by a club in a confined space without doing any damage. In golf, it is most important to strike the ball cleanly, and such mechanical aids have not previously had any convenient means of indicating how well the ball has been struck.

According to the present invention, a mechanical golf aid comprises a spring-loaded pivoted arm the free end of which simulates a golf ball, the arm being able to swing against the action of its spring when the ball is hit and having an indicator which indicates the limit of the angular movement of the arm after the ball has been hit.

The movement of the arm is dependent upon the impulse which is given to the ball when it is hit and therefore provides a rough guide to the eifectiveness of the golfers stroke.

The arm preferably swings about a vertical axis and is mounted on a base which is arranged to be fixed to the ground.

The indicator may include a dial which bears a scale and surrounds the pivot of the arm. The dial is positively moved by the arm as the arm moves away from a datum position. The dial may be frictionally retained in a position corresponding to the limit of the movement of the arm and a pointer then indicates the magnitude of this movement. The dial may subsequently be returned to its datum position to record another movement of the arm or alternatively it may be left unmoved until it is advanced by a more powerful stroke.

One example of an aid constructed in accordance with the present invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE I is a plan;

FIGURE II is an elevation as seen along the arm; and

FIGURE III is a section as seen in the direction of the arrows on the line III-11 in FIGURE I.

The aid has an elongated mild steel base plate 1 which has a hole adjacent each end. Two spikes 2 and 3 are rigidly fixed one in each of the holes in the base plates 1 by nuts 4 and 5, and 6 and 7, respectively which are screwed onto the ends of the spikes. These spikes 2 and 3 are arranged to be driven into the earth to fix the aid firmly to the ground but they can readily be removed from the base plate 1 and replaced by screws if it is desired to fix the aid to a wooden floor.

An arm 8, which is a high impact nylon moulding is rotatable about a mild steel pivot 9 which is riveted to the base plate 1 with its axis vertical. The arm 8 has an integral bush 10 which rests on a collar 11 formed integrally with the pivot 9. The arm 8 also has an integral skirt 12 and a steel torsion spring 13 is located in the annular space between the bush 10 and the skirt 12. One arm 14 of the spring 13 passes through a slot 15 in the skirt 12 and bears against the inner surface of a side wall of the arm 8. The other arm 16 of the spring 13 is fixed between a clamp 17 and the base plate 1. The effect of the spring 13 is to urge the arm 8to rotate in an anticlockwise sense around the pivot 9. The rotation of the arm 8 in this sense is limited by a stop 18 which is fixed to the base plate 1 and which is engaged by an integral projection 19 on the arm 8. In

ice

its datum position the arm 8 extends at right angles to the length of the base plate 1 as seen in full lines in FIGURE I. The force with which the spring 13 urges the projection 19 against the stop 18 can be varied by slackening the clamp 17 and moving the arm 16 of the spring 13 longitudinally before retightening the clamp.

The upper extremity of the pivot 9 and an integral coaxial extension 20 of smaller diameter each have a fiat which extends across an arc of approximately so that they are substantially of D section. A semi-circular dial 211 having a coaxial hole is rotatable on the extension 20 and is retained on the extension by a pointer 22 and a coiled spring 23 which is in turn retained on the extension by a washer 24 and an Allen screw 24a. Two washers namely a felt friction washer 25, a metal washer 26 are sandwiched between the dial 21 and the end of the bush 1%! and a further felt washer 27 is sandwiched between the dial 21 and the pointer 22. The central holes through the Washers Z5 and 27 and through the dial 21 are circular. The central holes through the metal washer 26 and through the pointer 22 are D-shaped so that these parts are keyed to the pivot 9 and its extension 267.

The arm 8 is formed at its free end with a part spherical projection 28 which simulates a golf ball. In use a player addresses the ball 28 with the arm extending towards him and with the base plate 1 so fixed that the ball is as far oft" the ground as it would be if it were resting on a tee. The ball 28 is then struck with a club and the arm 8 rotates about the pivot 9 in a clockwise direction against the action of the spring 13 as shown in chain dotted lines in FIGURE I. When this occurs, a projection 29 extending upwards from the top of the arm 3 engages a downward projection 3% on the underside of and adjacent one corner of the D-shaped dial 21 so that the dial 21 is caused to rotate with the arm as shown in the dotted lines in FIGURE I. The arm returns to its datum position under the action of the spring 13 but the dial 21 is retained, by the friction between the felt washer 27 and the metal washer 26, in its position corresponding to the limit of the angular throw of the arm 8. A scale 31 calibrated in yards is marked around the top of the curved edge of the dial 21 so that an indication of the force with which the ball was struck and a rough indication of the distance which the ball would have travelled is given by the position of the pointer 22 on the scale. The throw of the arm 3 for any given impact may be decreased by screwing up the Allen screw 2411 This compresses the spring 23 and consequently increases the frictional drag between the felt washers 25, 27 and the metal washer 26 and the pointer 22 respectively. In this way the scale marked on the dial 21 may be calibrated. In addition, the frictional drag of the friction washer 25 acts as a brake on the arm 8 as it is returned to its datum position under the action of the spring 13 and thus reduces the shock sustained by the stop 18. The dial 21 may be returned to its datum position by hand or it may be left as a target for future practice drives.

I claim: 1

1. A mechanical golf aid comprising a base, a pivot pin rigidly fixed to said base, a substantially rigid arm having first and second ends, said first end being pivotally mounted on said pin, a part simulating a golf ball on said second end, a coiled torsion spring surrounding said pin, means anchoring one end of said spring to said base and the other end of said spring acting on said arm to resist turning thereof about said pivot pin, first and second abutment members mounted on said pivot pin, first inter-engaging means on said pin and said abutment members preventing rotation of said members but allowing axial movement thereof, a rotary indicator mounted on said pin between and frictionally engaging said abutment members, additional spring means urging said abutment members into contact with said indicator to restrain the movement thereof and second inter= engaging means on said arm and said indicator, said second interengaging means being positioned to come into contact with each other to move said indicator with said arm when said arm swings in a direction against the action of said torsion spring but move out of contact on reverse movement of said arm, whereby when said arm is swung by striking said golf ball simulating part, said indicator moves to a position indicating the magnitude of the angular movement of said arm and is there retained by the frictional grip of said abutment members.

2. A mechanical golf aid as claimed in claim 1 comprising means axially adjustable on said pin for com- References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 661,381 11/00 McHardy 73-381 1,800,934 4/31 FOX et a1. 73-381 2,176,263 10/39 Klein et a1 73396 2,826,074 3/58 Child 73379 RICHARD C. QUEISSER, Primary Examiner. ROBERT L. EVANS, Examiner. 

1. A MECHANICAL GOLF AID COMPRISING A BASE, A PIVOT PIN RIGIDLY FIXED TO SAID BASE, A SUBSTANTIALLY RIGID ARM HAVING FIRST AND SECOND ENDS, SAID FIRST END BEING PIVOTALLY MOUNTED ON SAID PIN, A PART SIMULATING A GOLF BALL ON SAID SECOND END, A COILED TORSION SPRING SURROUNDING SAID PIN, MEANS ANCHORING ONE END OF SAID SPRING TO SAID BASE AND THE OTHER END OF SAID SPRING ACTING ON SAID ARM TO RESIST TURNING THEREOF ABOUT SAID PIVOT PIN, FIRST AND SECOND ABUTMENT MEMBERS MOUNTED ON SAID PIVOT PIN, FIRST INTER-ENGAGING MEANS ON SAID PIN AND SAID ABUTMENT MEMBERS PREVENTING ROTATION OF SAID MEMBERS BUT ALLOWING AXIAL MOVEMENT THEREOF, A ROTARY INDICATOR MOUNTED ON SAID PIN BETWEEN AND FRICTIONALLY ENGAGING SAID ABUTMENT MEMBER, ADDITIONAL SPRING MEANS URGING SAID ABUTMENT MEMBERS INTO CONTACT WITH SAID INDICATOR TO RESTRAIN THE MOVEMENT THEREOF AND SECOND INTERENGAGING MEANS ON SAID ARM AND SAID INDICATOR, SAID SECOND INTERENGAGING MEANS BEING POSITIONED TO COME INTO CONTACT WITH EACH OTHER TO MOVE SAID INDICATOR, SAID SAID ARM WHEN SAID ARM SWINGS IN A DIRECTION AGAINST THE ACTION OF SAID TORSION SPRING BUT MOVE OUT OF CONTACT ON REVERSE MOVEMENT OF SAID ARM, WHEREBY WHEN SAID ARM IS SWUNG BY STRIKING SAID GOLF BALL SIMULATING PART, SAID INDICATOR MOVES TO A POSITION INDICATING THE MAGNITUDE OF THE ANGULAR MOVEMENT OF SAID ARM AND IS THERE RETAINED BY THE FRICTIONAL GRIP OF SAID ABUTMENT MEMBERS. 